Navbar

31.7.12

To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under heaven:

- Ecclesiastes 3:1

There is nothing more exhilarating than being around a person who has discovered their purpose in life. It’s as if they are oozing life and freedom. Even on their difficult days you can still feel the energy flowing from the core of their being. Everything in this life has a time, a season and a purpose. Once we realise that and begin to discover the meaning of life we will unleash something truly beautiful from our life.

The Apostle Paul says in Roman 8:28 that, “we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.” Would you like a life where everything worked together for good? It is possible and all that is required is that we are called according to God’s purpose. You see, a life with purpose is great but a life according to God’s purposes comes with a guarantee. The guarantee is that nothing is wasted. So what does it mean to be called according to His purpose?

Purpose in this verse comes from the Greek word prosthesis which means to be ‘exposed’ or ‘to place before’ or ‘to exhibit oneself’ before God’. In a nutshell it means that if we live our lives continually before Him, in His presence then nothing will be for nothing. If we are living in this way, every single thing will turn around for your good no matter what. It is a wonderful thing isn’t it?

The way to live this way is easy to apply too as it says in Proverbs 3:6 that, “In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.” What does acknowledge Him mean? Acknowledge in this verse comes from the Hebrew word yâda which means to know. In the Bible to know someone was often use in reference to sex, for example Adam knew Eve and bore a son. It speaks of a deep intimacy. Knowing our purpose comes from knowing our God. It makes sense doesn’t it?

Purpose is a really important part of life and people without purpose are often feeling lost or confused about life. Many people long for purpose but struggle to figure out what their purpose is.

Determine to be a friend who has purpose.

Determine to be a friend who encourages others to find their purpose. Inspire your friends to be more. Stir your friends up. Motivate them if necessary. Help them to see that there is more to life. A good friend will not watch a friend wallow in self pity or settle for a life of mediocrity. Be a friend who encourages others to aim high, to keep going through difficult times and to never give up until they find their purpose in life.

To find your purpose you have to find know who you are. You will quickly discover what you are designed to do once you have a clearer picture of who God made you to be. Here are some tips on how to start finding out what lies inside of you:

Ask yourself what you excel at naturally now or perhaps when you were young?

What subjects did you enjoy at school?

What do you find yourself defaulting to now in any given situation? For example, for me it was organising things, in any situation I will always see a system that will make things neater and more efficient! Bingo, I must be a manager.

Have a long, hard, honest look back over your life up to this point and see if anything stands out to you that might define you. This may help you find out what God has put inside of you, which will help you find your way to your purpose. For me it is also writing, I have loads of notebooks in my home full of my writings and ponderings. I have always been this way; I am not content if I can’t write. Often, if I need to process something that I am going through in a season of my life, I write a short book about it. Even if it never gets published, it helps me process what I am going through.

Most importantly ask God to show you who you are, after all He made you and He is so faithful and if we ask He won’t let us down.

Being a friend who has purpose is not a selfish thing, it is actually hugely beneficial for your friends. If you are living your life of purpose it will be easy for you to point others in the right direction too.

Mini manicures just for fun and many more little treats to make your day special

All this in the beautiful setting of the historic Pittville Pump Rooms that is framed by the breathtaking park that surrounds our venue. What more could you possibly need for a lovely girly day out that will not only refresh you but has the potential to utterly change your life?

24.7.12

The past week has been challenging! I feel like the devil has been doing his best work to discourage me. I guess it is his job to steal, kill and destroy and he seems to take his job very seriously too! The King's Daughters Conference is only 45 days away and all hell has broken loose in my little world. From past experience I have learnt that the bigger the attack the bigger the fruit and I am convinced that this year's conference is going to be bearing some pretty big fruit. My prayer is that you are one of the blessed recipients of what God has planned for this event and that there will be much fruit in your life. This past Sunday I preached about the importance of guarding our hearts and I used one of my struggles as an illustration. I hope that my words are an encouragement to you as you face opposition in what God has called you to do. Listen to the message here and then remind yourself not to worry, just as I had to :) xxx

17.7.12

Your body is designed to self heal. Every single cell in our body can repair itself if our immune system is functioning well. Even damaged hair and spotty skin should be able to heal automatically. Our body is an amazing and intricate design that should function absolutely perfectly. Sadly this is not the case for most people as we neglect our bodies and damage its natural ability to repair itself. We poison our system with chemicals and we poison our mind with worry.

Yes, worry and a healthy body is connected.
Research by Dr Bruce Lipton PhD suggests that ‘95% of illness is caused by stress’. It has also been proven that stress can cause or worsen acne. A study was conducted in 2002 by the Stanford University School of Medicine involving 22 students suffering from acne. Their findings indicated that "Subjects who had the greatest increases in stress during examination periods also had the greatest exacerbation in acne severity."

Brittle, peeling nails also are a common side effect of stress. Hair loss or damage can also be caused by stress. The bottom line is that most dysfunction in our body can be traced back to one single cause – stress.
Removing every chemical from your health and beauty routine and replacing it with a Nature’s Way alternative is definitely a good thing to do. But even doing this might give you the results you desire.

You see, working on the outside of our body is only one aspect of Nature’s Way. Other factors are at work in our body and these factors hugely affect our health too. If 95% of illness is caused by stress then it stands to reason that 95% of our hair, teeth, nails and skin problems are caused by stress too. The key to a beautiful you could be as simple as not worrying! Worry is the most useless emotion that has no benefits only harmful side effects.

What is worry?
To worry is to give way to anxiety or concern, to allow your mind to dwell on difficulty or troubles. Stress is the result of worry. When you worry about something it adds a weight onto your mind which has physical consequences.

How does it work?
Stress causes you body to react. Your body perceives a threat and instantly protects itself by going in to 'fight or flight' mode. This is a good thing that protects your body from danger. When you are stressed your sympathetic nervous system signals the adrenal glands to release adrenaline and cortisol. This causes your blood flow to change and your heart to beat faster. Your body stops focusing on digestion and your immune systems stops healing your body. All this happens so that your body can give all its energy and blood flow to your muscles so that you can run away from or fight the threat. Once the stress passes your system will return to normal.

Most people’s stress responses are activated so often and for prolonged periods of time. This means that the body doesn’t always have a chance to return to normal which as you can imagine is very dangerous. Stress is known to cause all sorts of medical condition from a stiff neck or headache to cancer. It is also the cause of bad hair, teeth and nails. Stress stops our body from performing its natural healing activities because it is focusing on surviving the ‘threat’.

Read more in Nature's Way about how you can worry less and restore the balance in your body so it can heal naturally. Find out more about Nature's Way here.

13.7.12

An exciting look at what can happen when a woman places her ordinary life into the hands of an extraordinary God!

"Now
to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask
or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory in
the church by Christ Jesus to all generations, forever and ever. Amen."

On 7th July King's Daughters Uganda had a very successful outreach meeting with the young girls at a Gaba Parents High School. Here is Caroline's feedback:

"I
was accompanied by 5 women who helped me to carryout the outreach and
as a result 2 girls gave their lives to Christ. One of them is a Muslim. We talked about the LOVE of Christ and love for one
another and to my amazement one girl said she had a misunderstanding
with her friend but the teachings made her feel guilty and needed to
repent. She went ahead and hugged the girl. They cried together and it was good to see them ask for
forgiveness from one another. The school administration supports the
idea so much since it will help improve discipline"

Caroline will be meeting with the young girls of this school every Saturday.

On 19 June we enjoyed a Girl's Night out at CW's African Experience Restaurant in Gloucester. It was a wonderful outreach event where we were able to meet many new lovely ladies and share the love of Jesus with them.

...............

We also launched a new Girl's Nights this month. Gloucester Girl's Night, led by Margaret, was launched on 12th July and it was a wonderful celebration as this date was also Margaret's birthday.

I met some lovely ladies, ate yummy Nigerian food and transformed Margaret's living room into a fun Girl's Night. All in all it was a great evening and I am excited to see what God plans to do in and through this wonderful woman.

King's Daughters South Africa launched with their first Girl's Night on 29th June. Here is Joey's feedback:

"We discussed the topic “What does it mean to be a women?”. I first asked
the women in one minute to describe who they are? We then discussed
various areas we are challenged with on a daily basis? I found we all had
quite different answers to the above questions:

Women A stated
gave me a more of who she thinks she is as a person, whether in
business, or as a friend or as a member of a church. Women B gave me a standardised Christian answer and mentioned no challenges. Women C was not a Christian, so I had to speak in a language she
understood to communicate the questions, she was very interested in the
principles and being able to want to answer honestly. Each women
wrote down their answers and had a lot to think about with regards to
being a women? Much introspection into each of their individual lives. I
believe the questions and the core of this aspect of King's Daughters had quiet an
impact on each person in one way or the other."

9.7.12

Proverbs 27:5-6 says, “Better is open rebuke than hidden love. Faithful are the wounds of a friend; but the kisses of an enemy are deceitful”

What do you prefer - a friend who flatters you or a friend who tells you the truth even though it might hurt? It is easy for someone to say nice things about you as it benefits them. They know that you will like them because they are flattering you. However, these may not be friends that you can trust. It is the friends who are willing to risk losing your approval by telling you something that you may not want to hear. It is these friends who will always be honest. It is these friends who will say what needs to be said no matter what the cost. These are the friends you should treasure. They are honest.

Being on the receiving end of an honest conversation can be difficult. You might not even want to see that friend ever again. Consider that what they had to say might have been very difficult and perhaps even painful for them too. Understand that this is what a good friend does. A good friend is honest no matter what the cost.

Proverbs 27:17 says, “As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another”. It is only through honest friendships that we can grow and become more. Can you be sharpened by a friend? Are you big enough to receive an open rebuke? It’s not easy but the results are priceless. A friend who has bothered to be honest with you is likely to be a friend for life, someone that you can always count on when you need to know the truth about something. That brings me to another question, what sort of friend are you? Do you love someone dearly but have kept that love hidden? Do you take time to consider your words before you speak to a friend ensuring that what you say is honest? Are you willing to offer the truth to your friend even if it might hurt them? Mull over these questions and take time to be honest with yourself about the sort of friend that you are.

You will need wisdom though; some friendships are too new or too fragile to handle the raw truth. Take time to plan how you will present the truth to your friend. It shouldn’t be mean or unnecessarily harsh and should be wrapped in love and compassion. If you truly love your friend, always be honest but take care in how you present the truth to them.

One of the best methods that I have come across is the build – break – build method. Try to sandwich the negative between two positives. There is always something good to say about someone, no one is all bad. Take time to build the person up, especially if you know them to be sensitive. Reassure them of your love. Offer a loving touch or a hug before you get into the difficult stuff.

Once you are into the ‘break’ part of the conversation make sure that you are not beating around the bush. Get to the point and make the point clear. The last thing you want is for your friend to feel your disapproval but not really know why. It would hurt her more to have something vague thrown at her. Make sure you are direct and specific using very intentional key words in your conversation. If she has hurt you express your hurt honestly. If she has a blind spot about something in her life make sure you let her know that you have noticed something that perhaps she has missed. Keep it simple.

Finally, end off on a positive note so that she is assured of your love for her and knows that what you said was only for her benefit or for the benefit of your friendship. It is possible that she might need time to process the truth so let her know that you are happy to talk about it some more at another point if she needs to. Also, ask her for feedback. Find out how she feels about what you said. Give her the opportunity to disagree. It doesn’t matter if she is right or wrong; allow her the freedom to retaliate if she needs to. Don’t hold it against her, most of us don’t take truth or hurt very well. Give her some grace as she might not take it very well.

Another possibility is that you have made a mistake. Consider that you may have misunderstood her actions or intention. Factor in that you may not have seen the whole truth. Take into account that you could have made a mistake. Give her the opportunity to tell you something that you might not want to hear. There are many things to consider when having this sort of conversation but if you true desire is to be an honest friend then no matter what happens, you will grow from it.

You could lose a friend by being honest. Not everyone can handle the truth. Some people don’t value the truth. There are even those that prefer superficial flattery to a deep and meaningful friendship. You are only responsible for being an honest friend.

7.7.12

Toner
Using a toner is an extra step in your skin care regime that will tighten up your pores and improve the texture of your skin. A toner can also delay natural sagging of your skin which will keep you looking younger for longer. Sadly, most chemical toners will cause harmful substances to build up in your skin which will damage your skin and cause premature ageing. Most toners contain alcohol amongst other harmful ingredients.

Using a toner will bring your skin's PH level back to normal, remove the leftover traces of dirt and make-up and will absorb the excess oil from the surface of your skin.

Nature’s Way Alternatives

It’s so simple that you might have overlooked this one. A splash of cool water onto your face is a great basic toner. If the water is too cold it can constrict the blood flow, and can lead to burst capillaries. Also, water that is too cold makes your face blotchy and irritated. It’s best to use slightly warm water to wash and slightly cooler water to rinse as a mild toner. Of course this won’t remove any traces of make-up and doesn’t offer any PH balance so why not use a dash of rose water or even some homemade mint water. I have also heard that Apple Cider Vinegar does wonders as a toner. The most important thing is to experiment as everyone’s skin is different and will respond differently.

Results:

Healthy skin

Remove traces of dirt

Balance your skins PH level

Tighten your skin

Return your pores to their natural size

Save lots of money

No harmful chemicals

Cautions:

Never apply toner to dirty skin

NATURE’S WAY TONER

Ingredients: Mint

Method: Pour hot water over fresh mint leaves or a mint tea bag in a coffee cup. Leave for ten minutes. Strain and cool. Apply to your face and neck using cotton pads.

More toner recipes:
There are many other simple ways to tone your skin using natural ingredients, here are some examples:

Rose Water
Rosewater is a rich composition which enhances the skins natural healing properties. It can be used to soothe irritations and reduce swelling and blemishes. Rosewater is an excellent daily skin toner.

Sprits your face with rose water or use cotton pads to wipe the rose water over your face.

Cucumber and Yogurt

Take 1 small peeled cucumber and place it in a blender until it becomes a thick liquid paste.

Add ½ cup plain white yogurt

Mix together and apply to your face and neck.

Leave for 5-10 minutes then rinse off with lukewarm water and then rinse with cooler water to close skin pores.

Apple Cider Vinegar
Apple cider vinegar comes from fermented apples and is full of vitamins and minerals that help restore skin's pH balance. It also has antibacterial properties to fight skin infection and cleanse.

Dilute one part apple cider vinegar in eight parts water.

Apply to your skin and leave on from ten minutes and up to 1 hour depending on skin sensitivity.

Now it's your turn.

If you have any toner tips that work well, please share them with us. Find out more about Nature's Way here.

5.7.12

God is doing amazing things in and through King's Daughters all over the world. Not only is this year's conference going to be amazing but next year's one is going international! If we really want to see something amazing unleashed through us girls we will need to pray for it! Prayer moves mountains, reaches across seas and brings His kingdom to earth as it is in heaven.

I would like to invite you become a King's Daughters Prayer Warrior. We need people who will commit to praying at least once a week for all that is happening in King's Daughters and preferably with two or more believers. Each week we will post a list of prayer requests and each member is free to post praise reports as they come in. It is a wonderful opportunity for you to partner with King's Daughters. If you would like to join the prayer team please request to join the group here.

Most of all, if you haven't yet got your conference ticket please buy it now.

2.7.12

We live in a disposable age where things are easily thrown away once they have served their purpose. There are disposable cameras, disposable cutlery, disposable napkins and so much more. Disposable means that something is intended to be used once and then thrown away. Sadly, many friendships have become disposable too. People use other people to get ahead in life and once they have served their purpose the supposed friend moves on to the next person. Few people build friendships with the intention of making them last. Not many people value friendships through thick and thin. Many people enjoy their friendships while things are good but dispose of them as soon as they become an inconvenience. Loyalty is a rare and precious quality in a friend these days. As Billy Ocean once sung, “When the going gets tough the tough get going”.
It’s not only in this day and age that friendships are flaky; Job had the same problem way back in the fifteenth century B.C. He was going through the most difficult time imaginable. He had lost everything. His wealth, possessions, children and even his health were wiped out – all in the same day. His friends and family did not remain loyal to him in these difficult times. They accused him falsely saying that it must have been sin that caused his suffering and God was punishing him. In a time when he needed all the support he could possibly get he found none in his friends and family.
Loyalty means to be faithful, trustworthy, devoted, reliable, dependable and dedicated. Can you say that you are all or any of these things to your friends? Job most certainly could not admit to having one loyal friend in his life. Job tried to convince his friends that he had not sinned but no one believed him. Have you had friends like that, friends that don’t believe what you tell them and cause you a great deal of pain as a result? Or perhaps you have had a friend who has been your friend during good times and in times when you had something to offer them but left you to struggle alone through hard times. You cannot change what happened and although it hurts deeply you will need to forgive them and put it behind you. You cannot change how other people treat you but you can decide how you treat others. Let’s start with ourselves and take a look at how we can become a loyal friend. The Bible says that we will reap what we sow , let’s choose to sow loyalty.

Loyalty Starts With Love
No relationship will last if it isn’t based on love. Love is the best starting point because as 1 Corinthians 13:7 says, love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

Loyalty Loves at All Times
In good times and bad, loyalty based on love is unwavering. Proverbs 17:17 says that A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity.

Loyalty is Love in Action
Loyalty is not what you say but what you do. Love is not a feeling it is an act of your will. 1 John 3:18 says let us not love in word or in tongue, but in deed and in truth.

Loyalty Starts with God
Loyalty to each other is not a natural human quality. The Bible says that our heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it? Misplaced loyalty is what hurts friendships as it is more common to be loyal to our own selfish needs than to be loyal to someone else and their needs. Perhaps you or your friends have been more loyal to a career, lusts, money, power or self-importance. Most of us cannot testify to being naturally loyal, it is only by God working in us that we are able to become a truly loyal friend.

It’s not possible to be loyal without love and God. Our human nature is selfish. We use people as stepping stones to further ourselves in life. Some do it purposefully and blatantly while others do it without even realise that they are doing it. Someone once said that loyalty is like the juice of an orange – the flavour cannot be determined until the orange is squeezed beyond the breaking point. Let us, with God’s help, determine to found loyal when we reach that breaking point in our friendships.